Beautiful Evil
by AshtonJacks
Summary: Cassadine backstory-examines the lives of the Cassadines as well as S&C and Zem. Stefan Cassadine suddenly becomes ill. Was this a murder attempt? as the Cassadines gather around him and try to save his life, the tension mounts for Zem and S
1. Prologue thru chapter 2

Show characters are the property of General Hospital. Original characters are my property. Please do not steal or borrow my plot ideas, original character, story themes, or scenes. Thank you!  
  
This story begins in the spring of this year. Sonny and Carly are still together, and Zander and Emily on the run after he rescues her from boarding school.  
  
A cast list can be found at http://breeknight.tripod.com/BE/be.html  
  
Please tell me what you think and thanks for reading!!  
  
  
  
Prologue  
  
Greece   
1966  
  
Six year old Stefan Cassadine convulsed wildly in his bed. "Stop it please ,papa." A dark haired boy said as he wrong his hands. Stavros Cassadine was too young to understand what evil had brought his brother to death's door. "Papa why is he making those sounds?" Stavros asked again. His voice sharpened as the boy struggled to understand why his queries were not commanding attention.  
  
Mikkos Cassadine ran a hand over his world-weary face. Stefan was not doing well at all and he knew who was responsible. That snake of a wife, Helena. Mikkos focused in on the nurses that were caring for his second born. "Guard them with your lives."  
  
He ruffled Stavros's dark hair; stroked Stefan's perspiration dampened hand and strode out of the nursery. After turning a few corners he was where he had intended to be. Her upswept golden blond hair gave her neck a long elegant look and the dark red dress she wore accentuated the fact that Helena Cassadine was the most elegant and stunning of Cassadine wives. Her beauty was legendary. A generation of Greek and Russian musicians had lauded her beauty in song, dozens of artists had captured her beauty on canvas. She was larger than life.  
  
Mikkos walked into the room quietly and studied his wife for a long moment. She was such a snake but possessed such beauty. God tempted the weak with beautiful evil, Mikkos realized. He strode over to her and wrapped a darkly tanned hand around her alabaster throat. "Never again, Helena. I care not about propriety. You will leave my home now and never come back. You will hold no claim to my children." He growled. "And furthermore, you will never exert your hatred on Stefan."  
  
As he studied his wife, he realized that her expression was not one of fear or terror. She wore an expression of smug satisfaction. "Why do you wear that smile when I could easily snap your neck?" Mikkos growled. She didn't immediately respond so he pinned her unresisting form against the wall.  
  
"Release me." Helena gasped as her hand went to her throat. She clawed at Mikkos hand then sucked in deeply of the warm air as he stepped away. "I will be staying. She announced.   
  
Mikkos moved behind his desk. Her nearness usually confused his senses. "You will most certainly not be staying." He replied. "There is nothing for you here."  
  
Helena's smile turned absolutely evil as she played her hand upon her stomach. "Perhaps but there is something for you that grows within me. I carry twins this time Mikkos. Twin boys to complete your family. If you force me to leave I will simply have to rid myself of them."   
  
When Mikkos could only glare at her in impotent fury, Helena turned on heel and walked out of the room. She had secured her place in his life, weather he liked it or not.  
  
"Damn her." Mikkos sank wearily into his desk chair. "She knew that was the one thing that would be insure her life and her place here." He ran a hand through his thick dark hair. "Gregor?" He summoned his assistant into the room. "Have Madame Cassadine followed and guarded by those loyal to me alone. Also, arrange for the doctor to bring some prenatal equipment from Athens tomorrow. I intend to discover just how long she has been pregnant. If those twins were not sired by me their lives will be as forfeit as their viper of a mother."  
  
~*~  
  
Stavros Cassadine sighed and looked out the window as his brother slept. He knew who had done this of course. Why did his beloved mother treat Stefan so badly? A lone tear ran down the child's face as he slipped unnoticed out of the room. He had duties to attend to. First, he had to tell Natasha that Stefan would be all right. Stavros didn't know if that was truly the case, but he had to remain strong. The heir did not allow personal feelings to color his duty. Papa would surely be taking care of their mother, so that left Natasha to Stavros. He puffed his chest out proudly, happy that he could help his father. He had failed papa earlier with his emotional outburst but he would not fail him now.  
  
The young boy crept soundlessly along the corridors and out into the cool night. Only her nanny he and Stefan knew that Natasha spent many nights at the waterside. The sad young girl was drawn to the crystalline blue of the endless sea.   
  
"Natasha!" Stavros scrambled over the sand to his cousin. She was sitting at the water's edge, a cardigan sweater thrown over her shoulders. She had removed her shoes and the water was lapping at her bare toes. Stavros envied the carefree way that her toes were able to drink from the surf. His minders would never let him be this unrestrained.  
  
When the young girl looked up, Stavros gave her a small smile. "How are your lessons working?" he asked, motioning to the picture book that lay opened on her knees. His cousin spoke mostly French and Stavros was glad that his father had insisted that he learn to be   
Multilingual.  
  
"They are well." Natasha shared with a small smile. Stavros sometimes intimidated her. Though she did not live in the big house, everyone on the island knew that Stavros was to be the heir to the family title, the prince. While he was always nice to her, he did hold a lot of power. "Even though you smile you look sad. Is something the matter?"  
  
Stavros nodded and sank to his knees in the moist sand. "Stefan has taken ill, little one. We know not what is the matter, but it appears to be quite serious."  
  
Natasha bit her lip as tears shimmered in her big eyes. Stavros felt a catch in his chest at her pain. "I am sorry to have to tell you this." He soothed as he slowly opened his arms to her. When the young girl rushed into his arms, he felt as if she was home there.  
  
"Will he die?" her voice trembled as she tried to hold back tears.  
  
"I hope not." Stavros replied quietly. "Would you like to come back to the main house for the night. Nanny will keep quiet if we ask her to. You can stay in my room. I will stay up very very late."  
  
The five year old bit her lip as she considered her cousin's offer. "May I sleep with Stefan?"  
  
Stavros shook his head in his most official way. "He is too sick to have you in bed with him. He might hurt you by accident." He stroked her hair slowly feeling quite paternal. Stefan had never wanted his protection or comfort. That was what the nannies were there for. "But you can stay in my bed. I have some wonderful stuffed animals there and we get some television programs from England and France. I have a television of my very own in my room. I have to talk to my papa or my Uncle Victor about Stefan but I will not leave you alone for long." He told her importantly.  
  
"All right." She stood and slipped her hand into Stavros'. Why couldn't he and Stefan be her brothers? Instead, mummy was gone and she was all alone. "But I want to see Stefan." She insisted in a quiet voice. "I love him very much."  
  
~*~  
Mikkos watched his children from a short distance away. The strain of hiding Natasha's true identity was already wearing at him. Still, his only defense against his wife was hiding his daughter's paternity. "You should be careful, your true feelings show." A low voice uttered behind him. Mikkos whirled, prepared to fight anyone who would be so bold as to challenge him.  
  
"Ah Victor." He said with warmth in his voice." Helena has gone too far this time. She has again attempted to end Stefan's life."  
  
The younger man nodded, his gaze fixed upon the horizon. "Anthony and I will back you if you choose to end her miserable life. The brothers rarely stood in strong unshakable form but all of them hated Helena with equal passion.  
  
Mikkos sighed heavily. "I cannot. She is pregnant. She claims that she carries twins, mine. I cannot rid this family of the curse of Helena until I know that her spawn are not mine. But rest assured, dear brother, the moment I find out what I know, she and her brats will be long gone from this house, this family."  
  
Victor nodded. "These children are not yours?"  
  
"How could they be?" Mikkos asked thoughtfully. "We rarely sleep together any more. I find it beyond my comprehension that I could have fathered twins in our few liaisons."  
  
"It only takes one time, brother. Do not let your hate obscure what could be a joyous event for you. Let her birth the babies, then rid yourself of her, whatever their paternity may be."  
  
Mikkos nodded, his decision made. "I may very well do that. Why punish the child for the sins of the viper. Mark my words, Victor, she will never harm any of my children as long as I draw breath.  
  
Present Day  
Chapter 1  
  
"Oh God Stefan, please wake up!" Alexis Davis paced the hard floor outside the Gh emergency room. The call had come in two hours ago. Her brother had been found in his office unconscious, a hypodermic needle sticking out of his neck. At first glance, the needle appeared to be clean.   
  
Alexis paced back and forth outside of Stefan's cubicle. She didn't want to call Nikolas yet, especially since things were so strained between them. Alexis didn't much care for her brother's deception either, but she knew that where Helena was concerned, rational thought often abandoned the Cassadines.  
  
Still, as angry as she was with him, she never once entertained the thought of Stefan dying. It was just so incomprehensible. Stefan seemed immune to Helena's way of exacting final justice all of his life. Could she have been involved in this, Alexis wondered before letting out a huge sigh. "Of course Helena was involved." She told herself, her voice echoing through the long hallway of fluorescent light and hard tile floors. "When trouble befalls this family, Helena is usually involved.  
  
"Are you Alexis?" the woman whirled at the sound of the comforting Irish lilt.  
  
"Yes I am." She said quickly, studying the young doctor before her. He looked as if he would be more at home in a forest somewhere. For some reason his tightly muscled form brought forth images of him standing in a dewy forest chopping wood. She swallowed audibly and tried to banish her lustful thoughts from her head. What was she thinking? Her brother was hurt, possibly dead and she was entertaining very distracting notions of his good looking doctor. What was wrong with her?  
  
"Please sit down." The doctor led her to a chair and she steeled herself for the worst. Doctors never gave good news when they asked the patients' families to sit down. She perched ion the edge of a hard plastic chair and looked up at the doctor expectantly.   
  
"Alexis I have some very bad news for you." The doctor began somberly. As she gripped his hands tightly, she nodded.   
  
"I'll have to make arrangements." She said past parched lips.  
  
"No no it's not that." Ian assured his accent thick as he tried to derail her train of thought. "But he is rather ill. We have to run a toxicology screen on him as well as a battery of other tests. It is possible that the needle did was not used to inject anything. The police have it and will analyze the contents but time could be of the essence here."  
  
Alexis nodded. "That's fine. Can I see him? Can he speak?"  
  
"You can see him, but just for a minute." Ian cautioned. "He is unconscious at the present time and there is no way to tell how long he will stay that way."  
  
"Is he in a coma?" Alexis needed clarification.  
  
"We believe so. We will not know the depth of the injury or be able to predict a prognosis until we have the toxicology reports in. Otherwise his physical health is excellent so please think the best."  
  
"But this could be a long term thing, correct?" Alexis asked. She had much to do if that was to be the case.  
  
Ian nodded. "It appears that his symptoms are consistent with those of a victim in deep unconsciousness, but there is no way to accurately predict anything until we know what we are up against. He could have been drugged or he could have a neurotoxin in his system. We just don't have any answers at this point. If you need anything at all, I won't be far at all." He squeezed her hands gently before disappearing back into the curtained area.  
  
~*~  
London, England  
  
"I'm with the band." Luke Spencer assured as he tried to push past a pair of burly bodyguards at Wembley area in London. The two men presented a solid wall of muscle and flesh, impeding his progress.  
  
"Where's yer backstage pass?" one of them sneered as he poked Luke in the chest.  
  
"I didn't get one." Luke shrugged nonchalantly. "My daughter is in the band."  
  
" 'At's what they all say." The cockney accent was so thick that Luke could barely make out the living tree trunk's words.   
  
He arched an eyebrow and turned to Lucky. "Can you believe this? I bet they get a lot of men in their forties here with their teenage sons who just want to see their daughter and sister." Luke glanced back at the mostly young female crown that stood behind them. "Come on we just want to see my daughter."  
  
"Get lost." Tree trunk number one sneered. Luke sighed dramatically and met Lucky's eyes, wondering if they should break through the human barrier.  
  
"Dad Lucky?" Luke breathed a sigh of relief when he heard her voice. He pulled his blond daughter into his arms and held her close. "Hello sweet angel. You were great up there." Luke's first born reminded him so much of Laura. Liana had always favored her mother in looks and her father in personality. Even though she was now twenty one years old and a semi professional singer, she would always be his little angel, his little sugarplum. Even though he felt embarrassed about doing it, Luke slipped his coat over her skimpy costume.  
  
"Thanks."' She replied as she smiled at her father. "And how are you Lucky? I'm surprised to see you here with dad."  
  
"Yeah." Lucky pinked under her scrutiny. The siblings had always been close and even when Lucky had discovered that his sister's conception was rape, that knowledge had just served to bind them closer together. Now that Lucky was back and his time with Helena just a memory, his bond with Liana was growing every day despite the distance that separated them. "It was a free trip to see my sister, what can I say."   
  
Liana hugged her brother tightly. "I missed you." She confessed. When her brother had been found, Liana had taken a week off the worldwide tour to spend some time with him. A few months had passed and Lucky looked like a different man. It warmed her heart to see him with their father. Maybe there was hope for her family yet."  
  
"And I missed you." Lucky said seriously. "So are the rumors true about you and Zeus?" he asked, waving a newspaper article in his sister's face.  
  
Now it was Liana's turn to blush as she studied the photograph. Zeus, the lead singer for the band she sang with was clad in skintight leather, his muscles bulging outward in a nearly obscene gesture. She straddled his thigh wearing only high-heeled boots, a skimpy sequined top and a skirt slit right up the side. They were gazing into each other's eyes as they shared a microphone and their feelings were written all over their face.  
  
"Lucky we're just acting. Zeus and I are just friends." She said, as she gathered her father's coat closer. She never felt self-conscious unless she was around her family.  
  
"Just friends huh?" Luke asked as he studied the photograph himself. " He's looking pretty friendly with your body darlin'. I think I want to meet this Zeus."  
  
Liana blushed and shook her head in resignation. "I knew this was going to happen, " she sighed. "All right dad, just remember that he is my boss. Act professionally."  
  
"Act professionally?" Luke growled. "He had his damn paws all over you during the show. He should act professionally and keep his hands off my little girl. And you....you should be more dressed." He gestured to her stage costume in a frustrated manner.  
  
She grabbed her father's arm in a tight fist. "Dad you will behave or there will be hell to pay. I don't lose my temper much but I can pretty well guarantee that you won't like the results OK, buster?"  
  
Luke nodded, put in his place for the moment. Luke nodded, put in his place for the moment. Liana knew that it wouldn't last for long though. When he met the hunky singer, her father would be impossible to control then!  
  
  
~*~  
  
Alek Cassadine walked out of Wembley arena and walked into a cab. After giving his destination of the St. James hotel, he settled back and closed his eyes.   
  
"So how do you think they did?" the harsh New York accent startled him. He sat up straight, hitting his head on the roof of the cab.   
  
"What the bloody hell....who are you?" He asked as he studied the woman. Dark hair, blue eyes, great figure ...she was beautiful. She was not a typical fan of Zeus but people had been trying to get to his client for many years in many ways. This wouldn't be the first scheme that was pulled on him.  
  
"Lois Cerullo Ashton at your service." She said extending a hand to him. "From L&B records."  
  
Alek reached for his inhaler and took a puff of the medicine as he watched the woman. His asthma was relatively under control since he had reached thirty years of age, but he still had to be careful in situations of stress and surprise. "Bloody hell Lois you started me."   
  
He had had a long day. Working at Cassadine Industries had taken up most of his morning and afternoon, then his managerial skills for Zeus had caused his day to become very stressful. Now, it seemed that he wouldn't even have a calm and quiet ride to the hotel before   
seeing Zeus again.  
  
"And charmed to meet you too." Lois replied. Her accent added to the sarcastic tone and Alek found himself taking deep breaths to stay calm.   
  
"What can I do for you? What can possibly be so important that you had to crash my bloody cab."  
  
"Someone got up on the wrong side of the bed this day." Lois drawled slowly. She gave him an innocent look before insolently popping her gum in his face. "I wanted to make you an offer."  
  
"An offer?" Alek repeated. She sounded like that woman on the television show about the hired help. What was it called.... the Nanny? "I don't sleep with the fans and neither does Zeus."  
  
Lois glared at him furiously. OK, maybe she shouldn't have crashed his cab but how dare he imply that about her. Without thinking she reared back and slapped him cleanly across the cheek.  
  
Alek's eyes widened as he saw the blow coming. She wasn't going to....was she? The force of the blow snapped his head soundly against the window where he slumped, unmoving. A small trickle of blood ran down the pane of glass.  
  
"Oh my God. I just decked a Cassadine!"  
  
~*~  
"...And do you Alexander Smith take thee Emily Bowen Quartermaine to be your lawfully wedded wife...." Emily awoke suddenly, her heartbeat racing under Zander's protective arm. She tried desperately to slow the scream that welled in the back of her throat but instead a tiny squeak came out. She was exhausted by the stress of running, running when she and Zander hadn't done anything in specific wrong. Her family had no right at all to send her away, as if she was some unsightly growth on the family tree. They didn't understand that things with Zander were real, but someday they would. Emily gritted her teeth in the darkness of yet another cornfield and dared the moon to ignore her. "I will marry him." She said in an undertone. "And it will be forever."  
  
"Em? Are you ok?" Zander asked sleepily. He had been very worried about her heath lately and the fact that she wasn't sleeping was a further concern to him. She was so pale and wan, was not holding much food down and her jitters were absolutely palpable. Zander wondered again about the wisdom of traveling on their own. Emily needed the family structure of the Quartermaines as insane as they oft times acted. They seemed to complete her in some strange way, he realized in a brief moment as his eyes trained on the little girl lost.  
  
Emily sighed. "Yeah I just had a really nice dream but then I woke up and we were here."  
  
"Do you want to go home?" Zander asked into the silence of the night.  
  
He felt Emily shake her head emphatically before she spoke. "No way. This is my time to be me, Zander. They will never push me around again. It's time for me to take a stand and I am taking it with you."  
  
"Ok then." Zander said with a chuckle. Emily could be a tigress when she wanted to. "I'm glad you're on my side.  
  
"How could I not be?" There was a teasing tone to Emily's voice that hadn't been present in months. "You ply me with Pixie stix and I'm yours."  
  
~*~  
"Boss?" Johnny rapped on the door of Sonny's penthouse before walking in.  
  
"Yeah what is it?" Sonny asked his most trusted guard.  
  
Johnny shifted from foot to foot slowly. "We have a lead on them boss, but so does the other side. We're in a race against time now."  
  
"Dammit!" Sonny cursed. He angrily waved an arm, sending a crystal vase crashing to the floor.  
  
"What the hell is going on here?" Carly asked as she walked into the room with Michael on her hip. The toddler had been startled by the loud crash and was whimpering. "You just made Michael cry." She accused.  
  
"Enough Carly." Sonny snapped. He turned to Johnny with concern. "Can you get there in time?" He asked in a low tone.  
  
"We're doing our best boss." Johnny apologized. The search for Zander and Emily had been complicated by many factors, not the least of which was the fact that Sorrel was watching Sonny's camp for clues to the teenagers' location. Sonny didn't want excuses though, he wanted results.   
  
"There are two groups on the hunt for the kids." Sonny said in a low voice. "Can you get them back here unscathed, Johnny. Are you capable of doing that?" Though his tone was low, Johnny knew that the anger in the words was reserved for their enemies.  
  
"I will get it done boss. Get off my back." Johnny said in a firm tone of voice. He raised his eyes to meet Sonny's as a long look passed between the men. Sonny took a step forward in a gesture that was clearly one of dominance, but Johnny stood his ground as the tension sizzled around them.  
  
Carly watched the unspoken dance the men were doing, her sense of unease growing. "Sonny what's going on?" Her question was asked on a nervous giggle.  
  
"Nothing you need to be worried about." Sonny said slowly. Could it be that Johnny was getting a little too assertive for his position? Johnny turned his look upon Carly for a long moment, then walked out without another word, leaving Sonny wondering about his guard's loyalty.  
  
"Well I am worried. Who is after Zander and Emily?"  
  
Sonny turned back to Carly and sighed. "Nothin, Carly. I'll get them back just fine. I promise." As he sank down onto the couch Carly realized that her husband looked beaten.  
  
~*~  
  
International pop superstar Zeus shivered as he stepped out of the shower. The show had been a resounding success. He breathed in deeply a few times, enjoying the bite of the cool air in his lungs, his mind on Alek and the man's frequent breathing problems. Zeus had always wished to unburden Alek of his constant dependence on his inhaler. While the other man took his illness in stride, Zeus worried about him every day.  
  
"Alek? Liana?" he was rarely left alone. It wasn't that Alek and Li didn't trust him, just that they were his focus in the often hectic world. Hyper to a fault, Zeus often presented as an overly excited puppy dog of a man. Those around him were stunned to hear the depth of emotion in his songs. Sexy and sensual with pop stylings, Zeus' songs had ridden the top of the charts for a few years now.  
  
After he dressed he picked up a newspaper and studied a photo of himself and Liana with a smile. Though they were the consummate performers, the true depth of their feelings was starting to show. Zeus smiled as he noticed the warmth in the eyes of his newsprint counterpart.   
  
'Who is Zeus' the caption under the picture read. His real identity was a huge secret, his persona created by Alek and himself over a six pack of British lager. The journalists were so far off the scent of his real identity that they might never find out Zeus' alternate persona.   
  
Zeus picked up his passport and chuckled. "Zeus Taylor, Alek, you're bloody brilliant." His manager's ingenuity always amused him. The web of lies went so deep that no one was likely to find out unless one of his family members let the secret go. Even his mother didn't know what he did for a living.   
  
He walked over to the mirror and studied his reflection. "Mother dearest wouldn't even recognize me if we passed on the street." His dark hair was spiky, his leather outfit and wrist cuffs bespoke of a much more dangerous lifestyle then that of a rock star. The look served to tame his pretty boy looks and made him look more his thirty plus years.  
  
Zeus wandered around the backstage area but could not find Alek or Liana, so he returned to his dressing room and packed his bag. Alek had mentioned something about meeting at their hotel, but surely Liana wouldn't have left him without a goodbye, even if her father was in town. He really wanted to meet the illustrious Luke Spencer. With an evil grin he rummaged around in his bags and pulled out an outfit that would scare even the most impervious father. Luke Spencer had to learn that Zeus didn't frighten easily. As he dressed, his cell phone rang.  
  
"All right Li where shall I meet you?" He said into the phone. Very few people had his number and she was the only one likely to call him now.  
  
"It's not Li." Alexis sighed into the phone. She had started her calls with the brother that she knew would be the hardest to find. "Damon...Zeus...I'll never get used to calling you that name." She said with a nervous laugh. "We need you. Stefan is in a coma and may not come out of it alive. I need you to come home please."  
  
  
~*~  
  
The man watched carefully as Alexis stepped away from Stefan's hospital room. Unseen by all, he slipped inside and stood over the unconscious form within. "I will protect you this time Stefan. She will not win. I promise you this on my life."  
  
  
Chapter 2  
  
"It's not Li." Alexis sighed into the phone. She had started her calls with the brother that she knew would be the hardest to find. "Damon...Zeus...I'll never get used to calling you that name." She said with a nervous laugh. "We need you. Stefan is in a coma and may not come out of it alive. I need you to come home please."  
  
"What happened?" Damon's voice was hoarse as he absorbed the news. He mentally considered all the options as his mind whirled. Dealing with the details could help insulate him to the reality of the family patriarch's condition.  
  
"Helena is what happened." Alexis' voice was brittle as she relayed the news in a halting tone. "Attempted murder, poisoning. I can't do it alone. Nikolas will need you and Alek....please."  
  
Damon closed his eyes and burrowed a hand through his dark spiky hair. He couldn't break down backstage but the vulnerability in Alexis' voice had shocked and horrified him. Alexis never lost control. She always managed the family and if this situation was beyond her control...well...Damon knew that the situation was grave indeed. "I have some complications, Lexi, so I won't be flying in alone, but I will collect Alek and we will be there as soon as I can organize a flight home. Until then, see what you can do about keeping Nikolas calm and in control. By all means, tell him that we will be there soon."  
  
When Damon took control, she was finally allowed to let her tears flow. It felt so good to relinquish responsibility and control and ironic that she was depending on the least 'Cassadiney' of all of her relations. Alek would have been the natural choice to take control but instead happy, go lucky Damon was absolutely reliable. Sometimes being a Cassasdine did seem to have its advantages.   
  
"Thank you darling," she snuffled. "I will wait until I have an ETA for you to speak to Nikolas. While I hate keeping him uninformed, I can't do this alone."  
  
"You do what you have to do Lex, but remember you're never alone. Not so long as Alek and I can draw breath. Take it minute by minute and I'll telephone you as soon as I can." He paused a long moment, his mind racing. "I love you Lex. Remember, you aren't alone. Tell Stefan we will be there soon, ok?"  
  
Alexis affirmed that she would, then, compelled by some urge she neither knew nor understood she made her way to her brother's room. The click of her heels resounded on the hard floor of the hospital corridors as she hurried toward the VIP room. Even though Damon's conversation had eased the choking pain she felt, Alexis still felt insecure at the idea of leaving Stefan alone for very long, even though she knew that he would be safe enough at the this institution. "Get some guards." She reminded as she passed a darkly clothed man. Something about him reassured her and she nodded in greeting before she realized where he had come from. "You!" She exclaimed as she turned to face him, but he was gone, leaving Alexis wondering if he had been real or a figment of her imagination, a macabre angel of death.  
  
"Me?" The Irish doctor appeared at her elbow. She looked troubled, as if the stresses of the day weighed as heavily upon her soul as some of his burdens did. Perhaps they would be good for each other.  
  
"No." Alexis shook her head as she stared into the eyes of the handsome doctor. "But since you're here, how is he? Have there been any changes that I should be informed about?" She tried not to stare into his penetrating gaze; she tried to resist his seemingly unconscious power over her.  
  
"Nothing yet." Ian shook his head somberly. "But it is very soon. I wouldn't expect any change yet. Have you alerted your family?"  
  
Alexis nodded, smiling slightly. "Most of them are overseas but I have no doubt that they'll be here in as soon as it takes to fly over. We Cassasdines can be loyal to each other when such loyalty is earned."  
  
~*~  
"Oh my God. I just decked a Cassadine!"  
  
Lois watched him for a moment, wishing that he would open his eyes all the while. When he stayed unmoving, she motioned to the driver. "Stop staring and just drive willya. Go around the river a couple of times or something." She fanned her hands in front of the man. "Come on wake up. I don't wanna go to jail for Cassadine murder."  
  
Alek moaned slightly. His head beat a rapid tattoo against the window as the cab dodged and wove through traffic. Lois hurriedly pulled off her blazer and wadded it up. "Here." She said lifting his head. As she held his head in her hands, the cab went over a huge bump and his head slipped out of the cradle of her grasp to crash against the window again. "Oh my God I'm killing a Cassadine! What do I do?!"   
  
When the cab began to slow, she shoved her blazer under his head, creating a cushion. Breathing rapidly, she looked over at him "Please be alive. I don't want a dead Cassadine on my hands."  
  
The man moaned again and Lois brushed a lock of his hair back. "Come on be a good little Cassadine and wake up." Her tone had calmed with the more gentle motion of the cab. "Open those, baby blues, or baby greens or whatever they are like a good little nobleman."  
  
"They're blue."   
  
Lois shrieked and backed to the opposite end of the cab, her high heels gouging his leg in her haste to get away. "You're alive."  
  
"Not for much longer if you keep this up." Alek growled. "Your nursing skills leave much to be desired." He removed her heel from the outer edge of his thigh and handed it to her. "You apparently lost this as you were drilling holes into my leg." He sat up slowly, pulling her blazer away from his face. "And the next time you think to soften the blow, make sure that your brooch will not stick the poor victim and draw blood."  
  
"Oh my god, oh my God." Lois exclaimed as her voice gained energy. "I hurt you! I didn't mean to hurt you but I did."  
  
"Yes, well for someone who didn't mean to, you've done a bloody good job of it!" He crossed his arms over his chest and tried to look anywhere but at her light blue sequined tank top and the gorgeous body that filled it.  
  
Lois glared at him angrily. Ned had warned her against the Cassadines for so long, but she had never expected this kind of arrogance. "You deserved that slap for intimating that I would...."  
  
"That you would what?" Alek shot back. "You never shut up so why would Zeus or I even want to take you to bed. You would talk us to death!"  
  
Lois moved closer, vowing to herself that he would not best her. "You wouldn't know because you don't listen. I came in this cab to just talk to you not fight with you."  
  
Alek threw his head back and roared with laugher. "Is that what you call this? Fighting? I call it assault and battery from a groupie wannabe."  
  
Lois stamped her foot in anger and leaned in closer. "I am not a groupie! Stop calling me that you....you....brute!" As she flailed her hands to make her point, she realized with dawning horror that her fingernails were on a collision course with his chiseled cheekbones.  
  
Alek howled when her foot ground into his and grabbed her hands as she raked his cheek. "Stop abusing me woman." He said in a low tone, eyeing her crimson tipped nails. "And get these claws of death away from my face. These should be registered as lethal weapons alongside your heels!"  
  
"I only use them as a weapon when someone deserves it." Lois said, but the heat had gone out of her words momentarily. Why was she hurting him in so many ways? She pulled her hands away from him his crushing grasp. Alek hesitated, but released her. "I'm sorry." Lois said in a soft tone as she struggled to fight off tears of humiliation. When he didn't reply, but turned his stony gaze out into the London night, she moved a little closer. "I am sorry." Unable to help herself, her fingers slowly ran over the red stripes on his cheek.  
  
"Stop that." His tone was strangled yet husky at the same time.  
  
"No. I want to see how badly I hurt you."  
  
"And I want you to stop." Alek insisted, finally turning to look at her.  
  
"I can't." Desperate honesty had colored Lois' tone.  
  
"You have to." The gentle plea touched Lois in ways that no one had for a long time. When his gaze lifted to hers, she saw his ice blue eyes glowed with a heat that she needed to be complete.  
  
"Why?" The moan of need came somewhere deep within Lois' soul.  
  
"Because of this." His stony control finally shattered by the desire that swirled around them, Alek crushed her to him.   
  
~*~  
  
Carly slowly settled down near her husband and rubbed his shoulders gently. "What's going on. Who is after Emily and Zander? Are they already dead? Did Johnny have something to do with their deaths?"  
  
Sonny pulled back and just stared at his wife in shock. Her imagination was wild for certain but she had never been quite this insane. "Where do you get this stuff? Do you read it in books or see it on TV? Have you been watching soap operas again?"  
  
"What do you mean?" Carly retorted.  
  
"I mean where do you come up with these things? Where does your thought process go Caroline? You took a couple of things I said to Johnny and you wove some crazy tale. Do you think you're writing for a soap opera and using my life as an example?  
  
"No..." Carly began. She nibbled on her lip as she tried to figure out something to say.  
  
"Zander and Emily are missing and Sorrel wants them. That's all we know Carly. Stop creating elaborate scenarios around it. The kids have enough on their plates right now."  
  
"You said to Johnny that there were two groups after the kids. Who is in the second group?"  
  
Sonny sighed. After a few moments he steepled his fingertips. Could he tell her the truth? Did he trust her enough to put their lives in her hands? "Their parents are after them Carly and I don't even know how to begin to fight them."  
  
~*~  
  
Emily stayed awake long after Zander's breathing evened off. She had so much on her mind. Was being an assertive Quartermaine worth losing the love and respect of the family that had made them hers? Alan and Monica had done a lot to help her in the dark days when her mom was sick. They had supported her in the aftermath, when she had been addicted to drugs; they had been her family. Surely, in the face of everything they would learn to respect if not love Zander.  
  
Emily shook Zander gently. She had made her decision and wanted to move on it immediately. They were only in Pennsylvania and could be home by noon if they got lucky. "Zander come on, get up."  
  
"What is it?" Zander jumped to his feet, instantly alert.  
  
"I want to go home. I've been doing quite a bit of thinking and..."  
  
"And there ain't no place like home is there little darlin." A sinister voice said as a knife was thrust against Emily's throat.  
  
  
  



	2. Default Chapter

Chapter 3  
  
The man slipped into a hospital closet and tried to slow his breathing. He had been dangerously close to discovery by Alexis and had nearly stopped breathing when she appeared to see something beyond his disguise. Thankfully, the vacant room that he had ducked into was a utility closet and she had not followed him. "I can only save Stefan if I work alone." His richly accented voice permeated the comfortable darkness of the closet. Small spaces had bothered him greatly as a younger man but with maturity came both an acceptance and challenge to his fears. After everything that he had been through, his fears appeared to be mere trifles.  
  
"How fares he?" The other voice in the closet came as a complete shock to the man. He whirled in surprise, reaching for his weapon even as the voice became familiar to him.  
  
"You were nearly killed!" The man didn't know if he should throttle his companion or hug her.  
  
"You would have known it was me." The teasing note in the woman's voice was a welcome moment of levity. "I'm just shocked that you didn't realize it when you stepped into the room. My perfume is rather distinctive."  
  
He sighed rather dramatically and pulled the female form into his arms. "Stefan is in the throes of her poison now. There is nothing we can do but wait for the moment."  
  
"Then we wait." His companion expelled a breath and pressed closer. "You are just a man. You are not responsible for everything that happens to Stefan Cassadine."  
  
A long silence ensued as the man absorbed the truth of his companion's words. "Perhaps, but this time I failed and Stefan will die."  
  
~*~  
Helena Cassadine looked around her yacht before settling into a warm bath that her loving servant had prepared. "Andreas, you are a prince among men." Her voice was a near coo as the warm water relaxed tense muscles and calmed her senses.   
  
"Thank you madam." The young man's reply conveyed his distraction. Helena spared him a sharp look, her mood turning dangerous, as he did not react to the changes in her.  
  
"Andreas?" Helena's voice had taken on a distinctive edge. She hated being second to anyone or anything. "Andreas, answer me!"  
  
Her voice was finally a screech that he could no longer ignore. "Yes madam?"  
  
"I require your services." She seethed, bearing her back to him. "And I do suggest that you keep your mind occupied with my needs. I would hate to see you make a mistake and meet the same fate as your dear twin."  
  
Andreas' hands clenched around a bar of soap until the gooey matter oozed out of his palm and dripped into the water. Someday he would make her pay... Unable to act on his most fervent dream, Andreas instead turned to the unpleasant task of washing the Cassadine matriarch's back. If only her beautiful evil could be washed away so easily!  
  
Helena's mood brightened as the young man did her bidding. She really did like him and it was a pity that he was not more receptive to her hints. She had always wanted a more intimate relationship with this particular assistant but he was so shy. His twin had been a spark of passion but Andreas was more of a thinker instead of a man of action. She mentally scrolled through her staff, wondering which man she should invite to share her bed after her bath.  
  
A burst of cold air pulled Helena out of her musings as one of her favorite bed partners entered the chamber. "Mikhail, to what do I owe this pleasure?"   
  
"Madam." The handsome Slavic blond nodded in deference and gave Andreas a small smile in greeting. "I have found photographs that will interest you." Pride puffed the young man's chest out; he knew that this discovery would solidify his position in Helena's employ.  
  
Surprise caused her eyes to widen as she rose from the ornate bathtub. "Andreas, dry me and find my robe please." She inclined her head to young Mikhail. "You may make yourself comfortable in my room. I will meet with you there."  
  
The young man bobbed his head obediently and left the room.  
  
"He is quite like a puppy dog is he not, Andreas?" Helena observed. The soft chamois cloth tantalized her skin before the warmth of the robe enveloped her. She suddenly felt particularly charitable toward Andreas. "You may go to the mainland and stay in my suite at the hotel, Andreas. Just be certain to clean up here before you leave."  
  
Andreas offered Helena a smile at these words. "Thank you madam." She glided out of the room, and he bent over the tub. As soon as she had disappeared, though, he abandoned all pretense of cleaning to move to a hidden panel in the wall. "What are you up to?" he asked. It took only scant minutes to set up the spying devices that had been present since Luke Spencer owned the yacht.   
  
"Hello Mikhail." Helena greeted. She gave her loyal man a deep kiss, but was shocked when he pulled away. What spirit of independence had gotten into her staff?  
  
"Madam I have something very interesting for you." Helena hated the way he was preening and prancing about as if he was a peacock.   
  
"Well then, on with it." Her patience was gone and her good nature eroded even further as the young man made a show of pulling some photographs out of the manila envelope in his hands.   
  
"Do these people look familiar to you madam?" The man's excitement caused the pictures to tremble in his hands.  
  
Helena stared at the photos in absolute shock. After a few long moments she traced the masculine curves of the man's face. There was an air of sadness to her touch. After a time, she looked up to Mikhail with tears glistening in her eyes. "How and why did he choose to betray me so?"  
  
Mikhail was uncomfortable with the emotions Helena was displaying. Andreas ' function was to take care of her when she got morose but of course, he was nowhere to be found! "I don't know." He said sullenly. Wasn't she going to reward him for finding the photographs?  
  
"Well, you must find them Mikhail. Find them and kill them both." Helena let out a brittle chuckle as she held the photograph up to the light.  
  
Andreas pressed his eyes against the small peephole and tried to strain to see the photograph. This was something big; he could tell that by the emotion in Helena's voice. He felt a sense of impending doom as she and Mikhail spoke.   
  
As the photograph caught the romantic light, everything suddenly became clear to Andreas. "I have to warn them," he exclaimed softly before hurrying off the yacht.  
  
~*~  
  
Damon willed his hands to stop shaking as he absorbed the news. Their family was falling apart and this was no time for him to lose control. He had to stay strong for Alexis, for Stefan, For Nikolas, and even for Alek. Times of stress aggravated his brother's severe asthma and Damon knew that the transatlantic flight would be a trial at the best of times for his sometimes weak twin. He would have to be the one to direct and manage this crisis for them all.  
  
"Zeus?" Damon's head snapped up at the sweetest of female voices. It was his compadre, his lover Liana. He started to move toward her for comfort then pulled up and skidded to a stop. She wasn't alone. She was beyond not being alone; Luke Spencer hung on her arm. On her other side was a younger man, most likely Lucky Spencer. His life was getting more interesting by the moment.  
  
"Hi Li." His voice sounded raspy to his ears. Between the emotion of the phone call, a day of interviews and a night of performing in front of thousands of people, his voice was weak and it showed the stress of his emotions, even as he tried to paint a carefree expression on his face.   
  
Liana studied him carefully. "Are you all right?" Though he looked physically well there was certain grayness to his complexion that alerted her to some intangible problem.  
  
Zeus closed his eyes for the briefest of moments. "We'll talk later. Why don't you introduce us."   
  
Liana frowned. She wanted to pursue whatever was bothering her boyfriend but could not think of a way to get rid of her father and brother. They wouldn't likely leave anyway, she realized. "Dad....Lucky, this is my boss. This is Zeus Taylor. Zeus, my dad, Luke Spencer and my brother Lucky Spencer."  
  
Zeus extended a hand to the older and younger men. As Damon, he studied them critically; taking in Luke's tired expression and imagining what circumstances had been like when his elder brother and father had died at his hands. As Zeus, he sized Luke up, wondering what he suspected if anything about his relationship with Liana.  
  
Luke watched the younger man carefully. There was something very familiar about him, something that tugged at the edges of Luke's consciousness with warning bells but he couldn't figure out why. Zeus was a good looking enough guy and his body language was far from menacing. Maybe he was just reacting as a father looking out for his daughter's health and safety. He made a mental note to figure out what about the guy bothered him, before greeting him.  
  
"So, you're the guy that has his paws all over my little girl. " he drawled before taking the other man's hand in a crushing grip.  
  
"Daddy!" Liana's eyes flew wide open. "It's part of the act that's all." She gave Zeus a panicked glance. "Tell him Zeus."  
  
Zeus was so tired. He extracted his hand and shook Lucky's next before sinking to a nearby chair. "It's part of the act." His voice was absolutely devoid of emotion.  
  
Lucky nodded swiftly. He was willing to trust the guy, for the moment anyway. He and Liana had a policy. They cared about each other without intruding in romantic matters. If Liana needed some advice, he was willing to give it, but if she didn't he wasn't about to parcel nuggets of advice out unsolicited. "Yeah we know that." He offered. "Dad just overreacts to everything." He wanted to like the guy for Liana's sake.  
  
"So your act means you can fondle my little girl?" Luke pressed onward.  
  
"Daddy that is enough!" Liana was getting worried about the look on Zeus' face. "If you can't be nice, then go get a bite to eat and we'll meet you at our hotel in a short while. The surroundings are a lot more plush to harangue my boss." The old Spencer sarcasm was present in every word. She handed the men a room key and a map.  
  
Luke chuckled. "All right I'll give you two some alone time, but you better be there in a half hour or I'm sending out the dogs."  
  
Lucky placed an arm on Luke's shoulder and guided him away. "Dad, you're starting to sound like a Cassadine. Enough is enough." With a final wave to Zeus, he guided his father out of the room.  
  
Zeus watched them leave and managed a small smile. "Your father is singularly over the top Li."  
  
She nodded a reply, then sank to her knees in front of him. "What's wrong, my love. I haven't seen you like this before. Was meeting my dad that much of a trial?" Her hands wound around his neck, and she started to massage the rock hard muscles there. "You're so tense. Trust me, Zeus, my dad isn't a pussycat but he's easily controlled, as long as you're not a Cassadine. He has no time for them, not even my brother Nikolas." She pulled away to brush Zeus' cheek.  
  
He watched her for a few moments. How could he tell her his news? She wasn't ready for it; no she might never be ready for such a revelation. His deception would kill their relationship, would twist and turn it into something feral and unknown. Still, circumstances conspired against his schedule for telling her in the right way. He was stuck with the here and now.  
  
"Zeus what is it?" his continued silence set a ball of fear into the depths of her stomach. It was so unlike him to be quiet, generally she and Alek were shushing him constantly. "Come on, talk to me, honey."  
  
"I have to go home."  
  
He sounded lost. "Home?" Liana echoed. They had never discussed their homes, but she assumed that he based himself out of London and New York. "Why do you need to go home? We're in the middle of a tour!"  
  
Zeus looked at her with pleading eyes. "Family emergency, Liana. Will you come with me, please? I can't do this all alone. My mother has struck again and she wants to destroy us all."  
  
~*~  
Zander's eyes widened as the knife pressed against the delicate white skin of Emily's throat. "Don't, " He pleaded, looking into a set of eyes that he knew very well. "If you let her go, I'll do whatever you want."  
  
The man gave Zander a long look. "You're in no position to bargain right now, Alexander. You will do whatever I say or she will die . It's that easy."  
  
Zander took a step closer. "What do you want? I'll do it...now. Please don't hurt her." He reached a hand out, brushing Emily's fingertips before her assailant pulled her out of his reach.  
  
Emily tried to steady her heartbeat and regain her balance. Her eyes bored into Zander's and she wondered if she could gain an advantage over the man that was holding her. Something about him seemed familiar to her in some way, a whisper of some long forgotten memory.   
  
"You want me." Zander asserted. "I'm here. Take me with you. Like I said, I'll do whatever you need."  
  
Emily felt him turn her around to face him. The ski mask obscured everything but his laughing mouth. "Go. Get lost. Get out of my sight or I'll kill you now."  
  
Emily stumbled to freedom. "Zander?" She wasn't about to wander off and leave him in danger.  
  
"It's ok Emily. He doesn't want to hurt me. Family doesn't kill family do they, dad?"  
  
The man shook his head, then pulled off the ski mask and shook his dark wavy hair out.  
  
"It's you." Emily gasped in horror as his face became visible.  
  
  
  
  



End file.
